The present invention relates to systems and methods for transaction processing which combine bar code scanning with wireless network real time location functions to determine the location of a transaction. In particular, the present invention may be used to determine the locations of data transactions such as bar code scans or RFID reads, and as a result the locations of the items scanned.
Current transaction processing systems generally involve the use of barcode scanning or RFID reads and some form of wireless communications to transmit transaction information, either over a wireless local area network (“LAN”) or over a wireless wide area network (“WAN”), or alternatively, batch mode operations that involve docking a hand-held scanning device and downloading the transactions together in batches. However, these systems are limited only to transmitting transaction information, and are not capable of determining or providing the location of a transaction.
The use of mobile data communications systems to perform location functions for locating mobile units is described in articles entitled Enhancements to the User Location and Tracking System, by Paramvir Bahl and Venkata N. Padmanabhan, and User Location and Tracking in an In-Building Radio Network, Microsoft Technical Report MSR-TR-99-12, dated February 1999, by the same authors, both published by Microsoft Research. As described therein signal strength of signals of the wireless data communications system, such as a system using the protocol of IEEE Standard 802.11, are used for locating mobile units within an area serviced by the system. Other techniques for locating mobile units using wireless data communications systems are possible.
In co-pending application Ser. No. 09/926,516, filed Nov. 14, 2001, which is owned by the assignee of the present application and fully incorporated herein by reference, there is described a system for identifying and locating wireless assets in a wireless communication network using time differences of arrivals of a communication sequence at different network receivers arranged at different locations.
In co-pending application Ser. No. 10/679,524, filed Oct. 6, 2003, which is owned by the assignee of the present application and fully incorporated herein by reference, there is described an improved method and system for locating mobile units using a wireless data communications system.
It would be advantageous to combine real time location system functions with bar code scanning, RFID reads and other transaction processing techniques to determine to the location of a transaction.